New 2014 Road King on Order
- Thread starter Forgiven
- Start date
alabiker
Member
Hi Forgiven, I'm new to the Forum, but I've been riding a Road King Classic since 2001. I ordered it new when I was getting back into bikes after a 20 year layoff. I have thought about getting a new bike a few times, but if I do it will almost certainly be another Road King.
If you are new to bikes, which it sounds like, the RK is a big bike to start with, but you're only going to notice that at low speeds. Once it's rolling it's a dream. At walking speed, it's 800 pounds of metal and rubber that needs a little care. When you first get it, you might want to have a friend meet you in a large empty parking lot and practice the low-speed maneuvers you learned in your safety class. You should soon be able to do everything on your Road King that you did on your training bike, even though your new bike probably weighs at least 2-3 times as much as your training bike did.
And at very low speeds when turning, forget about the front brake. Don't use it at all if you can avoid it. If the bars are turned and the front brake is applied the momentum is going sideways, and the bike is going to want to fall. When you have a choice, make your U-turns and such to the left so that you can apply the rear brake if necessary and have your left foot free to support the bike.
We all want to ride straight lines and twistys, but you'll never regret putting in the time learning the slow speed stuff. Besides, it doesn't look cool to drop your bike trying to park during Bike Week.
Oh yeah. The friend is there in the parking lot to help pick her back up if she does fall. Again, she's beautiful but she does weigh 800 pounds.
If you are new to bikes, which it sounds like, the RK is a big bike to start with, but you're only going to notice that at low speeds. Once it's rolling it's a dream. At walking speed, it's 800 pounds of metal and rubber that needs a little care. When you first get it, you might want to have a friend meet you in a large empty parking lot and practice the low-speed maneuvers you learned in your safety class. You should soon be able to do everything on your Road King that you did on your training bike, even though your new bike probably weighs at least 2-3 times as much as your training bike did.
And at very low speeds when turning, forget about the front brake. Don't use it at all if you can avoid it. If the bars are turned and the front brake is applied the momentum is going sideways, and the bike is going to want to fall. When you have a choice, make your U-turns and such to the left so that you can apply the rear brake if necessary and have your left foot free to support the bike.
We all want to ride straight lines and twistys, but you'll never regret putting in the time learning the slow speed stuff. Besides, it doesn't look cool to drop your bike trying to park during Bike Week.
Oh yeah. The friend is there in the parking lot to help pick her back up if she does fall. Again, she's beautiful but she does weigh 800 pounds.